Compaq Computer Corp. (New York), in cooperation with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, has announced a worldwide voluntary recall and replacement program for approximately 55,000 Sony (Tokyo) battery packs used in their Armada E500 and V300 notebook computers. The serial numbers for the defective battery packs are TCGK 00001- 10500, TCGK 20001- 21800, TCGK […]
Valence Technology Inc. (Henderson, NV) announced that a Scandinavian-based cellular phone manufacturer has selected their lithium-ion polymer cells for a line of GSM and NMT cellular handsets. The new customer's wireless Internet digital device incorporates a digital camera, which allows the user to send pictures and text by fax or email. The handset utilizes a […]
Dynex Semiconductor Ltd. (Lincoln, UK) announced that it has signed a global distribution agreement for their line of power semiconductors, including IGBTs, thyristors and diodes, with Richardson Electronics Ltd. (LaFox, IL). "Richardson's strategy of partnering with leading manufacturers to provide customer-specific engineering and cost-effective solutions is in total agreement with our own philosophy. With Richardson […]
Catalytica Inc. (Mountain View, CA) announced a new name, Catalytica Energy Systems Inc., for its spin-off company. The new company was formed by the combination of two of Catalytica's subsidiaries, Catalytica Combustions Systems and Catalytica Advanced Technologies. Having a new name for the new company is intended to reflect a broadened focus on products and […]
Valence Technology Inc. (Henderson, NV) announced that a Scandinavian-based cellular phone manufacturer has selected their lithium-ion polymer cells for a line of GSM and NMT cellular handsets. The new customer's wireless Internet digital device incorporates a digital camera, which allows the user to send pictures and text by fax or email. The handset utilizes a […]
The US Department of Justice has sued AstroPower Inc. (Newark, DE), seeking up to $7.9 million dollars in damages for 100 allegedly false claims related to how the company allocated indirect costs in their Department of Defense contracts.In papers filed in the US District Court in Delaware, the government claimed that from 1991 through 1995, […]
Fuel-cell developer Dais-Analytic (Odessa, FL) announced investment by Enron North America, a wholly owned subsidiary of Enron Corp. (Houston, TX). As part of the alliance, Enron has made an equity investment in Dais-Analytic and will support market development, distribution and other field services for Dais-Analytic's products. Financial details of the deal have not been released."Our […]
Artesyn Technologies Inc. (Boca Raton, FL) has reported record sales for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2000 of $182.5 million and $506.4 million, respectively. Cash earnings, which exclude the after-tax effect of goodwill amortization, also increased to $15.0 million, or $0.37 per diluted share for the three months ended September 29, 2000 […]
Lucent Technologies (Murray Hill, NJ) named Henry Schacht as the company's new chairman and CEO, replacing Richard McGinn. In a formal statement over the weekend, Lucent's board of directors thanked McGinn for his term as CEO, but was adamant that "an immediate change in leadership was necessary." Representing the board, Franklin Thomas, Lucent's senior director, […]
Toshiba Battery Co. (Tokyo) has developed a compact UPS small enough to fit inside a typical PC. Called the Smart Nonstop Power Supply System, it was developed in cooperation with Nihon Protector Co. (Hyogo, Japan) and utilizes small, thin nickel-hydrogen batteries in place of the conventional lead-storage batteries and only one, rather than three, voltage […]
Micrel Inc. (San Jose, CA) has developed the MIC4681, a surface-mount dc/dc switching converter. The newest member of Micrel's SO-8 SuperSwitcher family, the MIC4681 uses four external components. It features a 2A pulsed-output current limit that can handle the maximum currents of GSM power supplies. At the same time, the device's fused-copper lead-frame design allows […]
Intelec 2001 will be held October 14-18, 2001 in the United Kingdom at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre in Edinburgh, Scotland. This will be the 23rd annual international conference dedicated to the exchange of information on energy and power for communication systems. Intelec 2001's theme will be "No Power, No Service, No Revenue." The conference […]
Ericsson (Stockholm, Sweden) reported that it has struck a deal to acquire Microwave Power Devices Inc. (MPD, Hauppauge, NY) in a stock deal worth approximately $200 million dollars.Ericsson will pay $8.70 per MPD share and will commence a cash tender offer for all outstanding MPD shares within the next 10 days. Although MPD's board has […]
Advanced Power Technology Inc. (APT, Bend, OR) announced that the APT board of directors has appointed Robert C. Pearson as a Director. Mr. Pearson has over 30 years of financial experience in the semiconductor and high-technology industry and is a senior vice president with Renaissance Capital Group (Greenwich, CT).Previous to his post at Renaissance Capital, […]
Argo-Tech Productions (Quebec, Canada) has changed its name to Avestor Corporation (Canada). This change was meant to be a concrete sign that the company is moving beyond the research and development phase, undertaken by Hydro-Quebec's (Quebec, Canada) research institute in 1979, to begin mass production and sale of advanced lithium-metal-polymer battery products. Avestor will launch […]